Various types of cushioning materials have heretofore been employed as protection for an item packaged for shipment. Two such types of cushioning materials are air cushions and foam cushions. An air cushion is formed from thin plastic film that is heat sealed along one or more edges to entrap air within it. An example of an air cushion is the AIRplus® air cushion, available from the assignee. A foam cushion is formed from thin plastic film that is heat sealed along one or more edges to contain expanding foam that is injected between two plies of the film. An example of a foam cushion and a machine for making it is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,727,370, hereby incorporated by reference herein as if fully set forth in its entirety.
Each of these two types of protective packaging has its own inherent advantages and disadvantages. One advantage of air cushions is that the fill material, air, has zero cost. On the other hand, the fill material of foam cushions, foam, has significant costs in its raw starting materials (two foam precursors). One advantage of foam cushions is that the freshly injected expanding foam of the cushion will mold itself to or around the item being packaged, thereby better protecting the item. On the other hand, an air cushion is unable to mold itself to or around the item being packaged. However, air cushions have greater resilience than foam cushions.
It is desirable to devise a packaging material that combines the advantages of both air cushions and foam cushions.